


Digimon Reboot

by tyoushiro



Category: Digimon Adventure, Digimon Adventure Zero Two | Digimon Adventure 02
Genre: Drama, Family, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-29
Updated: 2016-03-24
Packaged: 2018-05-10 07:26:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5576659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tyoushiro/pseuds/tyoushiro
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Slightly alternate reality in which the Yagami and Ishida families are united by marriage just before summer camp...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

Yagami Taichi sighed as his mother fussed yet again with his step-brother's jacket, her brown eyes trying to convey an emotion that seemed to be completely lost on Yamato: concern. It had been four days since his mom, Yagami Yuuko, had married Yamato's dad, Ishida Hiroaki, and as far as Tai was concerned, they were the four worst days from hell.

The wedding had been a disaster - Yamato had practically locked himself in the bathroom for three hours. Tai had had to threaten to break down the door before the petulant blond had come out, glaring and looking as though he'd barely run a comb through his unusually lank hair. Only an additional threat of setting the entire soccer team on the brat had convinced Yamato to smile for the wedding photos, and when their parents had set off for the new apartment for their brief honeymoon, Tai, Kari and their new step-brother had gone to spend three days with his mom's parents.

Yamato had pitched a fit when he'd been told that he'd have to share a bunk bed with Tai. Even after they'd gone to bed, Tai had listened for hours as the blond cried stifled sobs long into the night. The next day, his step-brother had refused to come out of the room until long after noon, and barely said a word to anyone. He'd looked like someone who'd been crying, not that anyone had been brave enough to call him on it. Tai had gone to bed early that night, but he was forced awake when he heard the sound of Yamato's sobs coming from the bunk above him. By the third day, Taichi accused the blond of keeping him awake at night with all of his crying. It hadn't gone over well with the apparently sensitive ten-year-old, who had proceeded to leave his step-grandparents apartment in a fit of anger. When Yamato had returned, he looked like he'd spent the five hours he'd been gone sitting in the rain.

Tai hadn't been surprised when, after spending their first night at their parents' new apartment, Yamato had woken up with a nasty cold. He'd even gone so far to grumpily say so at the breakfast table as his mom made them a very inedible breakfast. His mother had scolded him for being mean to his new step-brother, and Kari had kicked his shin under the table, but Yamato had insisted he'd be fine going to summer camp like originally planned.

"I packed you a sweater in case you get cold," Yuuko said sweetly to the stubborn blond. "Don't feel like you can't come home if you're not feeling well, okay?"

Yamato nodded mechanically, but even Tai could tell he wasn't listening to a word his step-mom was saying. Jerk.

As if she could read his mind, his mother turned her attention to him, almost glaring with her ferocious, over-protective streak. "As for you, Taichi, I expect you to be nice to your step-brother. Take good care of him and your sister, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am." Taichi groaned.

"Good!" His mother smiled, then hugged him tightly. She then whispered, "There's some cold medicine in Yamato's bag, too. Make sure he takes it regularly. Hiroaki says he can be stubborn."

//I could've told you that, mom,// Tai thought darkly, but nodded anyway.

The brunette woman turned her eyes to the eight-year-old girl standing on the otherside of Yamato.

"My little Kari-chan," she said, stooping down so that she was eye-to-eye with her daughter. "You'll make sure Taichi isn't too mean to Yama-chan, right?"

"Yes!" Kari giggled, hugging their mom. "I'll miss you, mama!"

"I'll miss you too! The apartment is going to be so quiet without you for two weeks!"

Tai watched his mother hesitate after letting go of his sister. After about a half-a-second of warring with herself, she pulled Yamato into a tight hug - a move that surprised the blond. "I'm gonna be mad at you if you don't take care of yourself, Yama-chan."

"Yeah, whatever." the blond replied, peeling his step-mom off of him and heading towards the bus.

Suppressing a growl of frustration, Tai shook his head and grabbed both his and Kari's bags. He said 'bye' to his mom once more and climbed the bus steps.

The seat across from the one Yamato had taken was empty, so Tai tossed the bags into it and slid in before glaring at Yamato from over top of Kari's head. The blond was listening to his walkman now, his eyes closed, head resting against the cold window pane. Occassionally, Tai could see the blond's shoulders shake as a cough wracked his frame.

The bus had already begun to move when Kari struck up a conversation to Takenouchi Sora, one of the few girls who Taichi played soccer with.

"So your mom got married again?" the strawberry blond girl asked.

"Huh?" he asked, turning his gaze from his step-brother, who had apparently fallen asleep, to his friend. "Oh. Yeah. To Ishida's dad."

"Ishida?" Sora repeated, looking thoughtful. "You don't mean..."

Tai pointed to Yamato, and watched as Sora's eyes widened. "Really? Wow. What's that like?"

In the two years that Yamato had attended their school, he had made himself something like a pariah to the students. Everyone knew who he was, even if they didn't know his name. It was hard not to notice him, what with his unusual blond hair and bright blue eyes, and his tendency to shove himself in the middle of other people's fights. The kid didn't even bother trying to get along with any of his classmates - in fact, he seemed to be content to be everyone's enemy.

"A pain." Tai replied honestly. "He's not so thrilled with our parents getting married, I guess."

"Oniichan!" Kari scolded.

"It's the truth!" he replied.

"What's his deal, anyway?" Tachikawa Mimi asked innocently, exchanging one of those oh-my-God-he's-so-cute looks with Sora that made Tai's skin crawl.

"I dunno." he shrugged. "His parents got divorced like three years ago. I guess he lived with his dad, but his little brother lives with his mom."

"That's so sad!" Sora exclaimed.

"Yeah, I guess so."

In all honesty, he wondered if his little brother wasn't the source of most of Yamato's attitude problems. The blond kept everyone at an arm's length, like he was afraid to get too attached.

As the bus came to a halt, Tai slung his and Kari's bags over his shoulder. After the bus was almost empty, he reached across the aisle to where Yamato was asleep and shook his step-brother's shoulder. "Hey, Ishida!" he hissed. When the blond didn't stir, he shouted his mom's favorite pet-name for the boy, "Yama-chan!"

With an angry growl, the blond snapped awake, blue eyes looking about wildly. "Wha - huh?" Upon spotting Taichi's smugly grinning face, the blond scowled. "Don't call me that!"

"Wake up, Princess, we're here." Tai replied, walking off the bus.

Once outside, he could see students milling about, waiting for their cabin assignments. Kari had found the second grade leader, Mikimoto-sensei, and was talking to a girl with coke-bottle glasses and long, purple-colored hair, while a small blond boy dressed in green was being chased by a small brunette boy with spiky hair.

When Yamato stood beside him, Tai watched the little blond boy's eyes light up.

"Oniichan!" the kid shouted, running straight for a very surprised-looking Yamato.

"T-takeru!"

"Isn't this great, oniichan? I missed you tons!" the little boy announced, hugging his brother's legs.

"I missed you too, kiddo."

Deciding to play oldest big-brother, Taichi slung his arm around Yamato's shoulders, knowing it would probably irritate him. Served him right for keeping Tai awake most of the night.

"So, Yama-chan, is this my youngest brother?"

He should have expected the elbow to the gut, but somehow, he hadn't. The look of surprise on Takeru's face was almost worth it though.

"Oniichan!" the youngest blond chastized. "I'm gonna tell mom you were fighting!"

Yamato's lips pursed into a thin line. "Shut up, Yagami! We aren't your brothers!"

"Huh?"

By now, Kari had wandered over to where they stood, worry clear on her face. "Oniichan, you're not supposed to be mean to Yamato-san!"

"He's the one who elbowed me!" Tai retorted. "Besides, isn't it kind of cruel to say we're not your siblings, now that your dad is married to our mom?"

Takeru's blue eyes widened. "Wha...? Oniichan, is it true?"

With a 'hmph' of disdain, Yamato crossed his arms over his chest and turned his back to the oldest of the Yagami children. "Yeah. For now."

Stalking off towards the fifth-grade leader, Fujiama-sensei, Yamato ignored Takeru's concerned expression.

"Anou..." the little boy said, turning his blue eyed gaze on the Yagami children. "I'm Takaishi Takeru, but everyone calls me TK. Glad to meet you!"

"I'm Taichi, but you can call me Tai. And this is my sister Kari." Tai returned with a smile.

"Cool! So now I've got two brothers and a sister!" TK's grin was as bright as the sun shining down on them. "This is so neat! Wanna play together, Kari?"

"Sure!"

The two eight-year-olds ran off down the hill, laughing together, as Taichi reluctantly headed towards Fujiama-sensei.

"No way!" he heard Yamato exclaim. "I'm not sharing a room with that moron!"

"No switching, Ishida-kun." Fujiama warned. "I've already spoken to your father, and I've been told to make certain that you and Yagami-kun work out your differences."

"This sucks!"

"Ishida-kun." Fujiama's vocie had a steel backbone that threatened detention and hours of suffering. Even Yamato seemed put-off by it.

"Hai, sensei." he growled.

When the blond turned around to face Taichi, he glared and wordlessly stalked down hill towards the cabins. Fujiama cast an apologetic smile at Tai, who shrugged and wordlessly chased after his step-brother.

"Why do you have to be so difficult all the time?" he asked after five minutes of silence. "You'd waste a lot less energy if you were a little nicer to people you know."

"Shut up." Yamato retorted, coughing slightly.

"I mean, you could be enjoying a little time spent with TK. He seems like a sweet enough kid, but you've got to go and ruin it with your attitude problem. I just don't get it."

"I said, 'Shut up.'"

"I mean, it's not like you're gonna get to see him much after we leave here, so if I were you, I'd be spending every chance I got with him. Not that you will, because you're not happy unless everyone else is as miserable as you are."

"I SAID -" Yamato had turned around suddenly, eyes wide with rage. He had started to shout at Tai when his face suddenly paled. A hand shot up to his mouth, and before Tai knew exactly what was happening, the blond had raced towards the side of the trail to vomit in the bushes.

As queasy as his own stomach was becoming, listening to Ishida wretch up a breakfast he hadn't eaten, Tai couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He walked over to where the boy was kneeling on the ground and rubbed his back in big, slow circles.

"Geez, you really are sick." he murmured. "You must really hate my mom if you chose to go to camp like this."

Ishida groaned in response, weakly coughing as his stomach settled. His arms were shaking so bad that Tai was pretty sure he was probably going to fall over in a few minutes, but slowly, the boy stood. "Didn't feel this bad before."

"Maybe you should go home." Tai suggested. "I mean, I know you don't want to spend time with my mom, and God knows her cooking will probably make you sicker, but it's got to be better than suffering two weeks like this."

For a moment, it looked like the blond was going to agree. Then the sky opened up, and snow began to fall at an unnatural rate.

"What the hell?" Tai pondered, holding out a gloved hand and watching as the snow accumulated on it. "It's the middle of summer. It shouldn't be snowing."

"Everyone, find shelter and wait out the snow!" Fujiama-sensei could be heard shouting.

"I guess we'd better find somewhere to wait." Tai grabbed Yamato's wrist and pulling him rather reluctantly along. "Come on."


	2. Chapter Two

Yamato gritted his teeth together as Yagami pulled him towards the nearest shelter. The snow was coming down hard, sticking to his eyelashes and making him shiver uncontrollably. He hated the cold. He detested his step-brother. He wanted to go home.

"Come on, Princess. Let's get you warmed up." Taichi teased, pushing open the shelter door.

"Don't call me that, jerk!" he growled, walking through the door anyway. Inside, TK, Kari, and several other students were already waiting out the storm. It took him a moment to calculate the best seat in the shelter - as far away from the others as possible. He sat down on a bench closest to the door, and began to cough again.

//Stupid!// He berated himself, coughing into his gloved fist. He hadn't meant to get sick when he had left the Kamiya apartment, hadn't meant to stay out so long. He had run from the apartment before the sun had even come up, intending to run away. The rain had only just begun as a light drizzle, and he'd been half-way to his mom's house when he'd remembered the horrible time he'd had the last time he'd seen his step-dad, Takaishi Takoma. They'd disliked eachother from the start, and when Yamato refused to jump on command...

He rubbed his left arm subconsciously, feeling a shudder run the length of his spine.

After realizing the cold truth, he'd made his way - very reluctantly - back to the Kamiya apartment. No one had asked him where he'd gone, or why. They ignored him as he threw himself into the room he'd had to share with Yagami, and he'd been left to sleep the rest of the day away.

It was his own dumb fault for getting sick.

"Are you okay, Ishida-kun?"

Yamato raised an inquisitive eyebrow at the sixth-grader who'd had the nerve to approach him.

"I'm... fine!" he bit out between coughs.

"He's lying." Taichi announced. "He threw up on the way down here!"

His cheeks became warm with embarassment, compounded with guilt when TK ran up to him, concern barely disguised on his face.

"Oniichan?" the kid asked. "If you're sick, why aren't you resting at home?"

"I'm not sick." he lied quickly. "I guess okaasan's cooking made me sick."

It wasn't possible, he knew. He hadn't had any breakfast, not even a nibble of the extremely burned toast that Ishida Yuuko had made. He didn't want TK to worry about him, though, couldn't stand the thought of his little brother thinking that Yamato was anything less than perfect. Normally, keeping the facade up was easy, since they didn't really get the chance to see eachother often. It would be considerably harder to fool TK if he was always around.

The big blue eyes that stared up at him made his skin crawl with guilt. If he looked too long into his brother's eyes, he knew he'd admit to lying. He looked away, crossing his arms over his chest.

To make matters worse, TK chose to climb onto the seat beside him. He could feel that innocent gaze burning on the back of his neck.

"So, TK," Yagami spoke up. "Why haven't we met before?"

//Damn him!// Yamato cursed inwardly. //Doesn't he know when to quit?//

"It's none of your business, Yagami!" Yamato growled, cutting off whatever TK might have said. "Leave it alone."

"Hey, I think I've got the right to know why I haven't met my youngest step-brother!" the annoying brunette retorted.

"Stop it, you two!" Takenouchi shouted, fixing them both with a glare. "You're not setting a very good example for the younger children!"

"Whatever. I'm outta here." He was on his feet and out the door before the others knew what was happening, but he had barely gone more than a few feet when he stopped in his tracks.

The snow covered everything in sight like a thick, glittering white blanket that hurt his eyes. Nothing, not even the trees, seemed to move - all seemingly frozen in time. It was beautiful in a way that he didn't want to ruin, but couldn't begin to protect. Impossible.

As the other children filed out into the snow, the reality of their predicament hit him hard. Would camp be cancelled? Would he be sent back home, to endure Ishida Yuuko for two whole weeks, all while trying desperately to ignore Yagami and pretend that he wasn't furious with his father? It was a very real possibility, one that he wasn't looking forward to. He had nowhere else to go, no one to turn to. Not TK. Not even his mother.

"What're those lights?" Hikari asked, causing Yamato to turn. His step-sister was pointing towards the sky, and as his gaze followed her finger, he noted the eight lights that seemed to be descending towards them.

"Be careful, Kari!" Tai warned.

Yamato held out his hand, watching as a strange, digital device landed in his palm. //First snow, now electronics?//

He felt a wave of nausea crash over him, making his knees feel weak. He struggled to remain standing, to appear normal in front of TK and the other children, but it was a battle he was rapidly losing. The ground seemed to give way beneath his feet, and he cried out in surprise, feeling as though he was being pulled down into a whirlpool.

 

 

He wasn't sure how much time passed between the feeling of falling, and when the Earth seemed to have stopped moving. His eyes were closed, and he was laying on his back, but he didn't feel as though he was laying in snow. Maybe that sixth-grader had carried him back to the shelter.

"Hey, Yamato!"

Who was calling his name? It didn't sound like anyone from the shelter. Maybe the teachers had come and got them all?

"Yamato!" the voice said again. "Wake up!"

He wasn't prepared for the sensation of a soccer ball falling on his stomach. His eyes snapped open, and he turned to the side, dry heaving.

"What the hell gives?!" he demanded when his stomach settled, pushing himself into a sitting position by sheer strength of will.

He wasn't surprised to see the dark-haired second-grade boy sitting a few feet away, but he hadn't been prepared to see the giant, catepillar like creature sitting in the boy's lap, or the bouncing orange furball immitating a Mexican jumping bean. His heart was hammering in his throat as he slowly realized that they weren't sitting in the shelter, or in the middle of the snow-covered woods in Japan, but instead were surrounded by what appeared to be a dense, tropical jungle.

"I must have a fever." he whispered, standing up. "This isn't real."

"That's not very nice to say!" the orange creature announced, jumping towards him. "Don't you know who I am?"

"You're not dreaming, Ishida-san." the second-grader reassured him. "We're in the Digital World. This fellow is Wormmon, and your friend there is Tsunomon."

To emphasize the younger boy's statement, the orange furball leapt into his arms, staring up at him with wide, cheerful eyes. "That's right, Yamato! I've been waiting for you for so long!"

"You've got to have me confused with someone else." Yamato replied, shaking his head. "I don't know anything about this place, or what either of you is talking about. This is crazy!"

"Ken-chan isn't crazy." Wormmon said. "You're really in the Digital World."

It was difficult to accept, but feeling the softness of Tsunomon's fur and smelling the sweetness of the air around him, Yamato had no choice but to believe them. He was trapped in some Digital World, with two odd-looking creatures and an even stranger second-grader...

"Oh God, TK!" he whispered, turning around. "TK!"

"Oniichan!" A bolt of blond and green shot out of the trees, hugging an odd, hairless hamster. "This is Tokomon, isn't he cute?"

Yamato had his reservations, but didn't have the heart to say so to his little brother. He was just grateful that TK was okay, and someplace that Yamato could keep an eye on him.

"We should find the others before something happens." Ken announced, standing up with Wormmon in his arms. "It isn't safe to be out here in the open like this."

They didn't have to walk far to find the majority of the other children. Yagami and his sister were both talking to what appeared to be a large pink dog's head, Takenouchi was standing nearby the fourth-grade girl and the two of them were discussing the different ways that they could dress their new companions. Whatever. There were two members of the group missing, though, that little fourth-grade geek with the computer, and the annoying, easily-panicked sixth-grader. So either they somehow hadn't been transported, or...

"AGH! GET IT AWAY FROM ME!"

The sound of the sixth grader screaming caught everyone's attention, and as he came stampeding towards them, Yamato could see the source of his distress was what looked to be like a brown-and-orange seal.

"Relax, Jyou! I'm your friend!" the mini-monster was trying to assure him, hugging the older boy around the neck.

"Guys!" Jyou begged, panting for breath. "Help?"

Yamato shook his head wordlessly, then turned his gaze to the creature in his arms. Tsunomon had nestled comfortably into his jacket, and seemed content to be quiet, which was fine by him.

"I've been trying to tell you, Jyou. We're not monsters! We're Digimon!"

Around them, the other creatures nodded and jumped in agreement. "And we've been waiting for you for a long time!"

"A long time, huh?" Taichi asked. "How's that? I've never even heard of this place before..."

Before he could get an answer, the fourth-grader burst through the forest. A roar split the air, and a gigantic red beetle swooped overhead, shearing the tops of several trees as it passed over their heads.

"RUN!"

Yamato grabbed TK's free hand, holding Tsunomon securely in the other, and ran. They were following Taichi's lead - it should have been his first warning. He was angry and disappointed when the group came to a collective halt, staring over the edge of a large cliff overhanging what appeared to be a raging river.

"Great going, moron! You've killed us all!" Yamato shouted, shoving TK protectively behind himself.

"Like we had a choice with that thing coming after us!" Taichi retorted.

"Here it comes!"

TK's hairless hamster jumped forward, opening its mouth and letting out what looked to be like a really large spit bubble that bounced off the red insect ineffectively.

"Stop it, Tokomon!" Ken shouted. "You're just in training, you're not strong enough to take on Kuwagamon!"

The digimon didn't listen. One by one, they all leaped forward, attacking with spit bubbles that bounced off of the chitinous armor like rubber balls.

And then Yamato witnessed a miracle - a rainbow of light descended from the sky to envelope the digital creatures, bathing them with photons that seemed to energize them. They began to change shape, to grow larger. Now, instead of simple bubbles, the monsters attacked with flame and electricity, vines and wind, water and sticky string.

One by one, Kuwagamon threw the offending digimon back towards their human partners. Then, in a fit of rage, the oversized bug sank its pincers into the ground between it and the humans.

A loud crack split the air as the cliff began to give way. Yamato tried to keep his balance, but felt that sickly, roller-coaster feeling in his stomach as they lurched backwards, towards the river. His stomach churned even as his body hit the cold water.


	3. Chapter Three

When Yamato opened his eyes, he was laying in his old bed, facing the bedroom door.

"What... am I doing here?" he wondered. This wasn't his room any more – after the wedding, they'd all moved into a larger apartment. His new bedroom was one that he shared with his stupid step-brother, Yagami Taichi.

Groaning, Yamato tried to sit upright. His head was pounding painfully, despite the darkness of the room, and he felt incredibly weak.

A sudden knock on the door was his only brief warning before Ishida Hiroaki, his father, entered the room.

"O-otousan!" Yamato stammered weakly.

"Hey there. Heard you weren't feeling well." The mattress dipped slightly as his father sat on the edge of it.

A large, cold hand brushed over his forehead, and Yamato nearly sighed with relief. He closed his eyes and savored the attention his father was showing him.

"Your fever's still pretty high. No school for you tomorrow, I guess." Hiroaki murmured. Gently, his father guided Yamato back down to the mattress so that he was laying more comfortably. "Try to rest up, son."

The mattress shifted beneath him as his father stood up. Yamato reached out a hand weakly to try to catch his father's sleeve, but failed.

"'tousan, wait!" he pleaded softly, but Hiroaki had already disappeared out into the living area, shutting the door behind him to leave Yamato in darkness.

It was probably for the best, Yamato decided. If the marriage – along with his step-siblings – was just a figment of a horrible fever dream, he didn't want to give it life by mentioning it out loud. His father might get the wrong idea, and think that Yamato wanted a new step-mom and siblings, or worse, might try to make him see another therapist. With a small sigh, Yamato buried his face into the cool pillow beneath his head, and tried to fall asleep. If he was lucky, his head would feel better in the morning.

The sound of someone moving things around in his room disturbed his sleep. His father never touched the things in his room – it was an unspoken agreement between them.

Yamato opened his eyes and rolled over, and let out a surprised yelp.

Yagami Yuuko – his step-mother – was straightening up the items on his desk.

"What are you doing?!" Yamato demanded. He looked around wildly – no, he was still in his room at the old apartment. Current apartment. Whatever.

The woman turned around and smiled tightly at him. "Are you feeling any better, Yama-chan?" she asked, walking towards him. Yamato scrambled backward on the bed to avoid her touch, watched as a flash of hurt crossed Yagami-san's face. "Hiro... anou, your father... was worried about you being home by yourself. I told him I'd take care of you while he's busy with work."

"He didn't tell me..." Yamato murmured. Yagami Yuuko sat down on the edge of his bed, and brushed a mothering hand down his cheek.

"You've been so ill, Yama-chan. You've been unconscious almost two days."

It wasn't possible. If he was that sick, his father would have taken off work, or at the very least, would have asked Natsuko, his mother, to watch him instead. Not his... was she his step-mother? Yamato felt so confused. Maybe the fever really had taken its toll on him and his memory. His father was just... dating... Yagami Yuuko, and Yamato wasn't going to summer camp, and the Digital World... well, that could have been a combination of a fever and one-too-many video games.

Yamato let out a sigh of relief. Everything was fine, it was going to be okay. He felt a lot better than he had before, so the fever would pass, and he could get on with his life.

Feeling slightly more confident, Yamato allowed Yagami Yuuko to usher him back down under the covers, even let her tuck him in the way his mom used to before the divorce, and thanked her for taking care of him while he was sick.

He closed his eyes, and smiled as he fell asleep.

The third time he woke up, his whole body felt... strange. He was sitting upright, propped in a corner on what felt like a padded bench, with the left side of his face pressed against... glass?

"Huh?" Yamato opened his eyes and found himself sitting in... a trolley car?

Looking around the dimly lit space, he could see TK and Kari curled up on the seats across from him, both cuddling Patamon and Gabumon. Further down, Takenouchi, Tachikawa and Izumi were both snoring softly. On the floor between them, on a bed of leaves, were Gomamon, Palmon and Biyomon.

Laying beside Yamato, curled up around his sleeping Wormmon, was Ken, shivering with cold.

Yamato frowned – what had happened? The last thing he remembered about the Digital World was... falling into that river. Had he hit his head on a rock or something? He stood up carefully, trying not to wake the second-grader and his digimon, and removed his jacket. He covered Ken with it, and tip-toed out of the trolley.

He found the missing members of their group easily: Yagami, Agumon and Tentomon were sitting around a small fire, talking quietly among themselves.

"Hey." Yamato said softly as he approached.

Yagami started, almost falling over backwards with surprise. "Geez, give me a heart attack!"

Yamato shrugged. "Sorry." Slowly, he sat down on the ground beside his step-brother. "What happened?"

Yagami poked a stick into the fire, sending up a few sparks. "You had a nasty fever. We were all really worried. It's good to see you up again, though. How're you feeling?"

"Sore. Really, really sore." Yamato admitted. "How... how did I get here?"

Yagami bit his lip. "Er, well... Jyou's not really that strong, and Izzy's well... short. So I... kinda carried you. On my back."

A blush rose in Yamato's cheeks. How embarrassing, being unable to walk... and TK... TK probably thought Yamato was such a weak person now. His little brother would never look at him the same way again.

Before Yagami could say anything else, Yamato stood up and ran across a small land-bridge, wanting to get away from his step-brother and the other children. He needed to think, and he needed space to do that.

His lungs were burning after running even such a short distance, but he sank down against a large tree and pulled his harmonica from the pocket in his jeans. For a long moment, he just stared at it in his palm. When he brought it to his lips, he thought about everything: the divorce, his new step-family, the possibility of being trapped in this Digital World for good... Mostly, though, he thought about TK, and how much he'd let his little brother down.

As he played, he watched Yagami stoke the fire, saw the firewood pop and send embers flying every which way.

Then the ground began to quake, and a large sea dragon raised its head above the water.

Yamato stood up so fast that his vision darkened briefly. He dropped his harmonica to the ground and ran towards the lake's edge. "TK!"

The digital monster pulled the peninsula towards the center of the lake – the only way to reach the others was to swim. As sore as he was, Yamato knew that he had to reach his little brother. He had to protect TK.

He dove into the water and swam harder than he ever had before.

"Oniichan!"

He could hear TK's voice calling him, and between strokes saw all the children and their digimon had abandoned the trolley to see what was going on.

"Seadramon's seen him!" Tentomon announced loudly.

"Watch out, Yama!" Yagami shouted.

Yamato barely gasped in a lungful of air before something wrapped tightly around his waist and dragged him under the water. As he struggled to free himself, the grip around his ribs tightened, squeezing the breath out of him. The edge of his vision was darkening, he was becoming light headed, when the water around him lit up brightly.

Immediately, Yamato was lifted above the water, and he could see what was holding himself captive: Seadramon's tail. It wrapped around his body so fully that Yamato was practically inside a cocoon of slimy wet scales, and the grip was so tight that he could feel the strain of his ribs threatening to crack.

"A-ah!" he whimpered in considerable pain, and wished that TK didn't have to witness this as well. If he died here...

"I'm coming, Yamato!" Gabumon, that quiet, faithful digimon that claimed to be his partner, shouted.

Yamato watched as the small digimon swam easily through the lake towards Seadramon, and was amazed as Gabumon was enveloped in a glowing light. The light grew brighter and expanded rapidly, and when it died, a larger wolf-like digimon swam in Gabumon's place.

"That's Garurumon!" Tentomon shouted. "His fur is as hard as mithril and as sharp as knives!"

"HOWLING BLASTER!"

As Garurumon's fiery attack struck Seadramon, the tail abruptly relinquished its hold on Yamato's body. He plunged into the lake with a loud splash, and struggled against aches and pains to swim to the island where TK and the others stood.

"Oniichan! You're okay!"

TK was there when Yamato reached the shore and collapsed, gasping for breath.

"Yeah," Yamato wheezed. "But what about Gabumon?"

"Look!" Ken said, pointing back towards the lake. "Garurumon did it! He defeated Seadramon."

Pain shot up his arms as Yamato raised himself up on them and turned to see Garurumon disappear in a yellow glow, returning to his rookie form. Seadramon fell beneath the lake's surface in clear defeat. Yamato sighed in relief, and laid back on the ground. It hurt too much to move.

"Yamato!" Gabumon said, swimming up beside him. "Are you alright?"

He nodded silently. "Yeah, just... trying to catch my breath, that's all."

"How are we supposed to get off this island now?" Jyou asked loudly. "Are we all supposed to swim to shore?"

"Just let me take care of that!" Gomamon replied cheerfully, and leapt into the water. "FISH POWER!"

Wide-eyed, the children watched as a large school of fish came to the edge of the island and pushed it steadily towards land.

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you," Taichi said. "I think we should stay here another day and rest up."

"Yeah, especially since we don't have to worry about Seadramon." Takenouchi agreed.

"Sounds good to me." Yamato agreed. "I'm beat."

Slowly, he stood up and walked towards the tree where he'd abandoned his harmonica.

"You were so awesome, oniichan!" TK announced cheerfully, sitting beside Yamato as he sat down against the tree.

Yamato tried not to flush with embarrassment, and raised the harmonica to his lips. He began to play, and felt TK settle into sleep beside him.

"You're so cool... oniichan..." his little brother murmured sleepily.

"Um... I-ishida-san?"

Yamato didn't stop playing, but craned his neck slightly to look up at Ken, who was wearing Yamato's jacket around his shoulders.

"I just... wanted to say thank you. And to give you this back." Ken removed the jacket as he spoke, and folded it carefully. He then sat down on Yamato's left, and quietly listened.

Despite the soreness in his limbs, the fever that had ravaged his body, and the embarrassment he felt at being so weak in front of so many strangers, Yamato felt... a certain peace... settle over him. TK slept peacefully on his right, as if the divorce had never happened, as if they saw each other every day instead of every few months. And Ken – sitting and quietly listening to the music, not judging – made Yamato feel comfortable with at least that part of himself.

Maybe, Yamato thought, the Digital World wasn't such a bad thing.


	4. Chapter Four

Five days had passed since the defeat of Seadramon, and in that short span of time, Taichi suspected that Yamato was in more pain than he was letting on.He'd seen the barely concealed winces of pain when TK hugged his oniichan's legs, heard the slightest of whimpers at night when Yamato was trying to sleep and rolled onto his side. Taichi could only imagine the bruises that Seadramon's tail had left on Ishida's body – especially since his step-brother refused to let anyone, even Jyou, look at them.

They'd been walking for two hours up a mountain trail, hoping to get a better look of the island. Nothing had seemed out of the ordinary – or at least, not more than usual – and it'd been pretty peaceful, until Jyou decided to grow a back-bone.

“I'm fine!” Yamato insisted for the fourth time that day, batting away the twelve-year-old's concerned hands.

“You're not fine!” Jyou argued sternly. It was the most assertive Taichi had seen the older boy, undoubtedly a side-effect of Gomamon's new-found ability to digivolve into Ikakumon. Tai was stunned into silence as he watched Kido attempt to pull the jacket from Yamato's shoulders. “You won't even sit down for five minutes because you know it's going to hurt to stand up again!”

“Get off!” Yamato growled, and shoved Jyou away with a wild look in his blue eyes. “Don't touch me!”

“Oniichan!” TK exclaimed, a pleading look in his bright eyes. “Jyou's just trying to help!”

“I don't need his help!” Yamato said. “It's just bruises, and yeah, it hurts. But it's nothing I can't live with, and it's not like there's anything we can do about it, so just... leave me alone!”

“You can't be this stubborn, Ishida-kun!” Jyou continued. “You've already been seriously ill, and pushing yourself when you're injured is a really good way to make yourself sick again. Do you have any idea how scared we were? You could have died!”

“I'm not having this conversation. This is so stupid!” Yamato walked away, moving quickly – if somewhat stiffly – up the mountain path until both he and Gabumon were out of sight.

“Thanks a lot, Tai.” Jyou muttered, throwing an irritated glare towards Taichi.

“Me? What did I do?” It wasn't like he could control Ishida at all – every time he even tried to talk to his step-brother it seemed to end up in a fight.

“You could have agreed with me, tried to talk some sense into him!”

“Yeah, because that's really worked so far.” Taichi retorted sarcastically. Yamato was frustratingly stubborn about the simplest of things – it wasn't likely that he would back down just because of something Tai said.

Slowly, the group trudged up the mountain. The path seemd to be unending, but after another hour of walking, widened into a plateau. Yamato was already sitting on a rock almost at the edge of the cliff, staring out over the island. Gabumon stood further from the edge, his wolf-like face filled with obvious worry as he watched Yamato's back. Even Kari and TK looked uncomfortable with the precarious position Yamato had placed himself in, and were both looking desperately up at Taichi to intervene.

“Don't sit so close to the edge, baka!” Tai scolded, grabbing Yamato by the back of his jacket. With a quick yank, he'd pulled his step-brother from the ledge, sending Yamato crashing to the ground. “If you fall, your dad and my mom are gonna kill me!”

“That's assuming we ever get back!” Ishida growled, getting to his feet.

“Of course we're gonna get home!” Taichi scoffed. Looking around at the faces of the other children, though, Tai could tell that they weren't nearly as convinced as he was. Mimi was barely holding back tears, and Sora and Izzy were staring out into space with thoughtful frowns on their faces.“You can't just go giving up just because it isn't easy! We just have to keep fighting and looking for a way to get home, there's gotta be one!”

“Look where we are, Yagami!” Yamato shouted, pointing out over the cliff towards the ocean. “We're on an island in the middle of nowhere! There's no one here except us, a bunch of digimon, and those weird flying black gears!”

They were glaring at eachother, but Taichi refused to give in to Ishida's cynical point-of-view. There had to be a way to get back home, he just knew it, even if he wasn't sure how.

Suddenly, the ground rumbled beneath their feet.

“What was that?!” Jyou shouted.

“It felt like an earthquake!” Izzy replied. “Unless this mountain is an active volcano!”

“No volcano.” Sora said. “Look!”

Tai looked to where Sora was pointing, back the way they'd come. The path had sheared away, leaving a gaping hole that was too long for any of the children to jump. They were stuck on top of the mountain, unless they could find another way down.

“Hey, does anyone else hear that?” TK asked, running towards the edge of the broken path.

“TK, be careful!” Yamato yelled and ran towards his little brother, just as a large digimon that resembled a cross between a lion and a warrior appeared on the other side of the gap.

“It's okay!” Patamon said reassuringly. “That's just Leomon! He's a good guy!”

“Yes, one of the most respected leaders of the digimon!” Gabumon agreed.

Yamato grabbed TK by the shoulders and carefully pulled his brother back towards the rest of the group. “He looks pretty angry to me!”

With a growl, Leomon unsheathed a large broadsword and leapt over the chasm. Taichi watched as the muscle-bound digimon seemed to descend in slow-motion, raising his sword over his head.

“Watch out!” Tai shouted a warning, but Yamato was already running, dragging TK by the hand. “Everybody, run!”

“Where do you think you're going?” Standing on the path above them was a large green digimon, grinning as he brandished a club.

“It's Ogremon!” Tentomon announced. “This is not good!”

All at once, Ogremon and Leomon leapt towards the group of clustered children and their digimon partners. Yamato grimaced, but sheltered TK with his body as Leomon descended towards them again. Kari clung quietly to Sora and Mimi, while Ken had pressed himself against the mountain itself, his purple eyes wide with obvious distress. Tai clenched his fists in anger – why couldn't they have one day without being attacked? Was it really so much to ask?

“Huh?” A bright light burst out of the digivice fastened to the belt-loop of his shorts, and the phenomenon quickly resonated among the other children. Within seconds, Greymon emerged to throw Leomon backwards with a simple toss of his large head.

“Finish him off, Greymon!” Taichi shouted, watching as Garurumon, Togamon and Kabuterimon hovered protectively around the other children.

As Greymon aimed a fiery attack at Leomon, a large chunk of the mountain above them broke free. All of the digimon worked quickly and effectively to reduce the size of the debris to dust. Slowly, everyone shook the dirt from their clothes and hair. Tai was relieved to see that no one seemed to be hurt, but the digimon had all reverted back to their rookie forms. Thankfully, though, Leomon and Ogremon had both seemed to have disappeared.

“That was close!” Tai exclaimed, carefully peering over the edge of the cliff for any sign of the two digimon.

“We should keep moving.” Yamato suggested.

For once, Tai had to agree with his step-brother. Who knew what kind of trouble they would be in if Leomon and Ogremon attacked again? Their digimon were already exausted, and Tai doubted they'd be able to digivolve again. “Yeah. No telling when those two will come back.”

They walked for hours. The mountain path slowly sloped back down towards a valley of trees, and there was no sign of either Leomon or Ogremon. Everyone was exhausted – even the digimon were too tired to offer their usual words of encouragement – and soon they would need to stop for the night.

“Yamato!” Gabumon shouted suddenly.

Tai turned to look back, and saw Yamato sitting awkwardly on the ground, grimacing in pain.

“I-I'm fine! Just... just tripped, that's all.” As if to prove his word, Yamato tried to stand up, only to fall back in pain. “Dammit!”

Taichi walked towards his fallen step-brother, and crouched down in front of him. “Get on my back.”

Yamato's eyes widened almost comically. “Are you insane?!”

“Well, unless Gabumon has enough energy to digivolve again – which I seriously doubt – or you plan on sprouting wings and flying, I don't think you have much choice.” Tai replied, turning around slightly so that his back was facing Yamato. “Now hurry up, we probably still have a way to go to get somewhere we can sleep.”

Reluctantly, Yamato grasped Taichi's shoulders and let his step-brother hoist him up into the air. It was somewhat different than when Tai had carried a mostly-unconscious and deliriously feverish Yamato, if only because Taichi could hear the barely audible whimpers of pain when he accidentally aggravated the injuries Seadramon had dealt to his step-brother.

“How much further do we have to go?” Mimi asked. “Palmon looks tired!”

“I've been tired before, Mimi.” Palmon reassured her partner.

“Admit it, Palmon, we need to rest. I can't even fly, I'm so sleepy!” Biyomon exclaimed.

“Look over there.” Ken said, and suddenly pushed past Taichi and Yamato to point through the trees. “It looks like a mansion. We could rest there, right?”

Taichi grinned down at the usually quiet kid. “Good job, Ken! Let's go, everyone, it doesn't look far!”

Ken smiled at the unexpected compliment, and led the group through the trees and onto a well-manicured path that went all the way up to the manor's oversized doors. The building itself looked like it was in good condition, but Tai felt a little uneasy. There didn't seem to be any signs of life coming from within the mansion, but the other children were eagerly running towards the doors. Jyou carefully turned one of the door knobs and pushed, then disappeared through the doorway. Taichi followed, tightening his grip on Yamato's legs as he joined the rest of the group inside.

“This looks weird.” Taichi murmured. Inside, the building was sparsely furnished and unusually dark, despite the sconces on the wall. Even stranger was the presence of one solitary picture of an angel hanging on the wall, her clasped hands raised as though she were pleading for mercy from an unseen being.

“It's better than sleeping outside where any random digimon could attack us at any moment.” Jyou argued logically. “At least we can get a good night's rest here.”

“He has a point there.” Yamato agreed, fidgeting slightly from his perch on Taichi's back. “I think I can walk now.”

Taichi looked from the hopeful faces of his classmates to the digimon who were practically asleep on their feet. It wasn't like they had enough energy to go much further anyway, so he nodded in agreement. Immediately, Mimi and Sora cheered while TK and Kari examined the semi-creepy angel painting on the wall. Slowly, Tai let Yamato slide off to stand somewhat unsteadily on his own. Almost as soon as Yamato was standing next to him, Gabumon perked up.

“Do you smell that?” The blue-and-white digimon asked, his nostrils flaring. “Food!”

“Food?” Yamato echoed. “Where?”

Gabumon led the way through a door on the first level of the mansion. A large dining room stood before them, a long table set with a luxurious feast. Tai stared in disbelief at the food, his mouth watering and stomach growling with anticipation.

“Wait a minute.” Yamato said, holding back TK before his younger brother could start stuffing food into his face. “This looks too good to be true. I mean, why would there be a giant meal like this in the middle of the forest if there's no one else here to eat it? It's like someone was waiting for us.”

“Is it really any weirder than that trolley car in the middle of the lake? Or all those useless telephone poles in the desert?” Sora retorted. “Not a whole lot seems to make sense here.”

“I don't know...”

Unfortunately, the digimon didn't seem to share their partner's sense of self-preservation. They dug right into the food with such reckless abandon that it was almost disgusting to watch. At first, Tai and the other children stood transfixed as they watched their digimon gorge themselves on roast beef, hot dogs, ramen and sweet cakes. When Jyou – decidedly the most cautious member of their group – decided to throw caution to the wind in favor of not being hungry, everyone else followed suit.

“That was the best!” TK exclaimed, happily patting his stomach as they walked down a hallway on the first floor. “I've never eaten anything so good before in my life!”

“That was pretty delicious.” Yamato nodded in agreement. “But not as good as 'kaasan's croquets!”

“It's gonna feel so good to soak in a bath after the last few days!” Jyou chimed happily. “Food and a roof over our heads... I think this is heaven!”

“Yeah, right!” Tai smiled and dashed into the boy's side of the bath where Ken and Izzy were already soaking in the water with the digimon. He didn't even wait until he was through the door before he started undressing, tossing his shirt and pants carelessly to the ground before he ran and cannon-balled into the bath.

“That looks fun! I'm gonna try!” TK announced, following Tai's lead. “Hahaha!”

Yamato waited until his little brother was safe in the water before peeling off his jacket and kicking his shoes off to the side. Ishida was biting his lip nervously as he reached for the hem of his shirt and slowly, carefully, pulled it up over his head.

“Holy crap!” Tai exclaimed, whistling long and low at the bruises revealed. Thick, variegated bands of reddish-purple bruises circles Yamato's chest and arms, hips and legs all the way down to his calves. Only Yamato's hands and feet seemed free from injury. “How are you even standing like that?!”

“Like I said, what can anyone do about it here?” Yamato shrugged as he walked slowly towards the bath and lowered himself into the water. “They're not as bad as they look. I bruise easy.”

Tai wasn't convinced. It must have shown on his face, because the next thing he knew, TK had swum up to them and was tugging on his arm.

“It's true!” TK chimed, blue eyes wide with innocence. “I remember when keifu-san caught oniichan fighting in the park! Oniichan's whole arm was black-and-blue when 'kaasan and I got home.”

“It wasn't...” Yamato's voice was hoarse as he started to protest, then seemed to think better of it. “It wasn't that bad.”

“It was!” TK insisted, looking from his older brother to step-brother. “That's why 'kaasan said he can't come visit any more.”

Taichi was stunned by Takeru's earnest information – Yamato's mother didn't want her son to visit because he'd been fighting? It was unfathomable to him, and from the broken look on Yamato's face, it was completely true. Without a word, Yamato climbed out of the bath and began to gather his clothes and shoes in his arms.

“Hey, Yamato-kun?” Taichi called after him, but Yamato refused to talk or stop walking out of the room.

Slowly, Tai turned his attention to his younger step-brother. TK's face had crumpled when Yamato had left the bath, and tears were shining behind his big blue eyes.

“Is oniichan mad at me?” TK asked, his lower lip quivering dangerously.

“No, not at all, buddy!” Tai replied, trying to grin and wave off TK's valid concern. The last thing he needed was both of his step-brothers to be upset at the same time, he could barely handle one! “Just... give him some space, okay?”

“Yeah, TK, I'm sure Yamato's just in a lot of pain. It's nothing to do with anything you said.” Jyou reassured the eight-year-old.

Taichi wasn't sure that TK was convinced, but his younger step-brother nodded up at Jyou and smiled brightly. Relieved, Tai sighed and tried to relax.

By the time they'd left the bath and gone upstairs, Yamato had already claimed a bed, and was laying curled up on his side while Gabumon was snoring loudly against his back. Tai tried to ignore his step-brother and flopped onto an empty bed with relish.

“Hey!” Taichi exclaimed in indignation as Hikari jumped onto his bed. There were only eight beds in the room, though, and with the other kids and their digimon, Tai supposed that it wasn't like his sister had much choice. “Why can't you share a bed with one of the girls?!”

Kari stuck her tongue out at him and curled up beneath the blanket on the bed.

Tai sighed heavily, then rolled onto his back to stare up at the ceiling.


	5. Chapter Five

Yamato's stomach felt like it was a giant, tangled knot, and despite the overwhelming source of heat that Gabumon provided at his back, his whole body felt like it was shaking inside. The whole day - finding the mansion, a giant feast and warm beds - felt too good to be true, and Yamato knew that he was anticipating the catch, waiting for the other shoe to drop…

What upset him most about the entire situation was that no one else seemed to share his anxiety. Even Jyou, the normally over-protective, incredibly worrisome and so-called 'responsible one' seemed to accept that everything they'd received today was something they were entitled to, having been dropped in the Digital World on an apparent whim. Why was Yamato the only one to dare to look the gift horse in the mouth?

He'd listened as the other children came into the room and settled into their own beds, laying down with their digimon to sleep in comfort. It'd gotten so quiet so quickly, and then TK had started to snore. Not loudly, no, just that familiar, quiet little sound that had been so familiar just a few years ago… Yamato hadn't realized how much he'd missed falling asleep to that sound.

Not that he could fall asleep now, he realized angrily. Gabumon was asleep, if the digimon's tail twitching against his leg was any indication, but Yamato couldn't calm his racing thoughts enough to let his exhaustion take over. The bruises on his body ached, but even the pain wasn't enough to drown out his thoughts. He couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen…

The sound of quiet breathing was interrupted suddenly by whispering voices. Taichi and Agumon, Yamato realized. He rolled over carefully, watching over the curve of Gabumon's head as his step-brother and Agumon left the room. It was somewhat comforting to know that he wasn't the only one awake, even if it was just Taichi needing to use the bathroom.

Rolling onto his back, Yamato stared up at the ceiling shrouded in shadow. If he were to be honest, he'd had trouble sleeping ever since his parents first announced they were getting divorced. How many nights had he just laid awake, listening to TK's breathing and wondering where it'd gone all wrong?

It'd been his fault, he'd justified back then. If he hadn't told otousan about what he'd seen, everything would have continued the way it always had. But that moment had changed Yamato forever, the afternoon when he'd come home and stumbled across okaasan with another man… He'd told otousan the first chance he'd had, and whether he meant to or not, Yamato had distanced himself from okaasan. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he must've known that it wouldn't end well, because he'd started doing more chores around the house as though he were silently apologizing to everyone for having seen, and having told…

After the divorce, Yamato had even more difficulty sleeping. It was the first time in his life that he could recall having a room entirely to himself, and with otousan working so many hours, he was often in the apartment alone. It'd been so quiet compared to what he'd become used to that he'd taken over all the housework just to wear himself out, and inevitably, he'd wake up to find he'd fallen asleep on the sofa or in otousan's chair…

Then otousan remarried, and Yamato found himself having to adjust to change yet again. Forced to share a room with Taichi, Yamato quickly learned that his step-brother talked in his sleep. It was unnerving the first night they'd shared a room, and Yamato had been irritable the next morning from lack of sleep. Worse yet, his new step-mother didn't expect help taking care of the apartment, and so Yamato had lost the only sure-fire method he'd found to help him sleep. He'd been even crankier those few days they'd had at the apartment before camp started, and being sick hadn't made him any easier to deal with, but otousan had told him to learn to cope with the change while they were gone.

It was easier said than done.

Yamato rolled onto his side again, burrowed down under the crisp linen sheet and closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep.

A sudden crash split the night air - followed by Taichi and Agumon's shouts echoing down the hall.

Heart pounding, Yamato sat up, eyes wide as the shadow-filled room around him seemed to disappear. The entire manor had been an illusion, he realized, painted over the ruins of a building that had long been abandoned. As the other children began to stir to wakefulness, the beds beneath them lurched into the air, spinning unpredictably.

"Hold on, Yamato!" Gabumon shouted, grabbing the headboard as Yamato struggled to keep his grip on the foot of the bed.

It was difficult to see where the bed was headed - it moved forwards and back, turned and dipped so quickly that it was all Yamato could do not to be sick to his stomach. The wind whipping his face was cold and seemed to be getting colder when he heard Gabumon's last warning.

"We're going to crash!"

 

* * *

 

 

The impact jarred every sore muscle in Yamato's body, but it was the cold that he detested more. His breath came out in clouds of white as Yamato searched for his clothes and pulled them on, one piece at a time.

"We need to find shelter, Yamato, or you'll get sick again." Gabumon said as Yamato finished pulling on his boots.

"I have to find TK first." Yamato argued. "I can't leave him out in this on his own."

Gabumon protested, but Yamato ignored him, choosing instead to trudge through the ankle-deep snow while shouting his otouto's name. With each step, snow snuck up the legs of his rolled-up denim pants and down into his boots, sapping him of what little warmth his clothes provided. They walked for what felt like hours, Yamato's voice going hoarse from shouting, his vision blurring from the cold.

It hurt to blink, his eyes were so cold, and he couldn't feel his feet any more. When his legs suddenly gave out, Yamato didn't have the energy to catch himself. He fell face-first into the snow, and knew in the back of his mind that he would've stayed there if Gabumon hadn't helped him back onto his numb feet.

"You have to rest, Yamato!" Gabumon shouted. "There's a cave over there. Let's get you warmed up, and then we can search for TK!"

"A cave?" Yamato repeated dumbly, staring in the direction Gabumon pointed toward. Hopeful, Yamato headed quickly towards the cave, but it was completely empty when he arrived. "TK…"

Discouraged, Yamato didn't fight as Gabumon shoved him towards a hastily built fire. He sank to the ground, feeling the warmth as it slowly chased away numbness from his fingers and toes.

"Stay here, Yamato." Gabumon insisted. "I have a fur coat, I can withstand the cold better than you can. Let me look for TK, okay?"

Yamato didn't watch as Gabumon left, instead staring into the flickering flames. He remembered what it was like to be little and lost, how it felt to think that no one was looking for you…

When Yamato was four, right before TK was born, he'd gone with okaasan to Tottori to visit his grandparents. Even though she'd been close to her delivery date, okaasan had insisted on taking Yamato to one of the ruins. Yamato remembered her by his side very clearly one moment, and in the next, an orange streak behind a wall over-grown with moss caught his eye. He'd run to investigate, only to find empty air. When he'd looked back, okaasan was gone.

Yamato had sat patiently, just like he'd been told to do if ever he was separated from his parents, for two hours before anyone gave him a second glance. Police were called, and he'd spent another three hours crying at the police station before his grandfather came to pick him up. Okaasan had gone into labor, he'd said, though Yamato hadn't understood what that meant until he'd been allowed to hold Takeru later that night…

He didn't have any excuse not to be looking for TK, though, unlike okaasan had when she'd been giving birth. It was cold outside the cave, true, but Yamato knew that TK would be just as cold, if not colder. Besides, he reasoned with himself, they'd be able to cover more ground if they were both looking for TK.

Yamato's mind was made up. He stood and left the warmth of the fire, and ventured back out into what was quickly becoming a snow storm.

* * *

 

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first Digimon story I started without any intention of romantic undertones. When I began it, I was hoping to study familial relationships in unconventional situations, and somehow Taichi and Yamato seemed to fit the bill... I'm still working on this story, though it's been slow to come along.


End file.
